The Land of the Leopard

In 2012, the Land of the Leopard National Park was opened in the southwest region of Primorye. The region, entailing the Kashan, Nadezhdinsk, and Ussuriisk areas, is the habitat of the world’s rarest big cat — the Far Eastern (or Amur) leopard.

The Land of The Leopard National Park was established on 280 thousand hectares of taiga, and it includes the “Kedrovya Pad” Reserve, the “Leopardovy” Reserve, and other territories. Later, over 80 thousand hectares of the National Park were approved as a protected zone.

The Land of the Leopard is divided into several zones. The “protected” zone requires a special access permit and is the smallest of them all. Restrictions for other zones are less strict: guided eco-tours are allowed in a “specially protected” zone; the “recreational” zone allows more active tourism; and the zone of “economic development” considers the interests of people living within the National Park.

The southwest region of Primorye is a unique area in terms of biodiversity: it is home to bears ungulates, lynx, and the Far Eastern forest cat (or Amur leopard cat). Here, you can also find ancient relic plants as well as species of tropical fauna.

Yet, the most important animal here is the leopard. To create more favorable conditions for the big cat, it was decided that a part of the “Razdolnoe — Hassan” freeway would go underground in a tunnel so that leopard can safely walk on its trails without crossing the busy road.